Vikings sack Arlington

ARLINGTON -- It's not how you start, but how you finish that matters most, the saying goes. Just ask the unbeaten Lake Stevens High School football team.

Lake Stevens fell behind 14-0 in the first quarter Friday, but the Vikings used a potent spread offense and relentless blitzing to zoom to a 45-23 victory in a Western Conference North Division game at Larson Stadium.

Led by quarterback Nick Baker (345 passing yards, three touchdowns), Lake Stevens (2-0 Wesco North, 4-0 overall) scored 28 consecutive points and handed previously unbeaten Arlington (0-1, 3-1) its first loss.

The comeback was similar to Lake Stevens' season-opening triumph, when it was losing 21-0 versus Mariner but won 36-34.

"It reminded me a little bit of the Mariner game," Lake Stevens head coach Tom Tri said, "where once the momentum started rolling the next thing you know we're looking up and it's like, 'Holy cow! Are we really ahead by that much?'"

Lake Stevens' defense (nine sacks) harassed Arlington QB Jake Parduhn all night. The Vikings limited Parduhn to 130 passing yards and 21 rushing yards.

"We started kind of slow. It kind of happens sometimes. But we picked it up and obviously it (turned out) good," said Lake Stevens lineman Zach Teuber.

Part of a ferocious line that dominated on offense and defense, Teuber had three sacks and six total tackles. Linebacker Sean Stickney (two sacks, eight tackles) helped spearhead the Vikings' defense too.

The game couldn't have started much worse for Lake Stevens. Arlington began with an 85-yard scoring drive capped by Parduhn's short TD run. Then on Lake Stevens' first possession Baker fumbled. Alexander Marshman scooped up the ball and raced 25 yards to the end zone.

Just like that, Arlington led 14-0.

But Lake Stevens bounced back. Using short and intermediate pass plays and tough runs by Duke Dolphin, the Vikings scored four consecutive TDs and led 28-14. Dolphin had scoring runs of 2 yards and 1 yard during the outburst.

Baker stayed positive after his mistake.

"After the fumble I just really wanted to come back and make a drive out of it and (get) us back in the game," said Baker, who completed 19 of 22 passes and began the second half with a 7-for-7 spurt.

Lake Stevens, which led 35-17 by halftime, piled up ridiculous first-half statistics on offense:

*Baker was 11-for-13 for 201 yards and two TDs.

*His top receiver was Trevor Riecks (four receptions, 100 yards, two TDs).

*The Vikings had 260 yards of total offense in the half, compared to 111 for Arlington.

Lake Stevens' high-powered offense was so good, the team overcame three lost fumbles in the first two quarters. The Vikings' defense wasn't bad either: Brandon Preslar returned an interception for a TD and Stickney was in on several big hits near the line of scrimmage.

"That was huge," Teuber said of Preslar's score. "It got us jacked up."

Lake Stevens won despite being without standout running back/safety Bo Dickinson. He suffered a back injury last week against Stanwood and could be out most of the season.

After its fantastic beginning on homecoming night, Arlington was unable to handle Lake Stevens' aggressive, no-huddle offense.

Once Lake Stevens got rolling on offense, its attacking defense clamped down on Arlington.

"Once they started blitzing, we couldn't stop it … . We've got some work to do there," Arlington head coach Greg Dailer said.



At Larson Stadium

Lake Stevens 14 21 10 0 -- 45

Arlington 14 3 0 6 -- 23



Arlington--Parduhn 1 run (Pierce kick)

Arlington--Marshman 25 fumble return (Pierce kick)

Lake Stevens--Dolphin 2 run (Isaksen kick)

Lake Stevens--Preslar 43 interception return (Isaksen kick)

Lake Stevens--Riecks 46 pass from Baker (Isaksen kick)

Lake Stevens--Dolphin 1 run (Isaksen kick)

Arlington--FG Pierce 20

Lake Stevens--Riecks 14 pass from Baker (Isaksen kick)

Lake Stevens--FG Granston 31

Lake Stevens--Tupen 32 pass from Baker (Isaksen kick)

Arlington--Pruitt 20 fumble return (kick failed)

Records--Lake Stevens 2-0 in division, 4-0 overall. Arlington 0-1, 3-1.